“Work smarter, not harder” … a goal worth
achieving, but how to be done when the work seems to overrun the time in which
it must be done?

Master Sgt. Michael Towne USAR Operations
NCO for Richmond Battalion, believes it takes a streamlined approach, focusing
on identifying and resolving problems before they occur. He has reinforced this belief by achieving Six
Sigma Black Belt certification.

Towne said he is now equipped to see clearer picture processes,
allowing both Towne and his peers to identify and correct inefficiencies at
work.

“My communication skills are enhanced and I’m now able to
effectively describe and correct errors,” he said. “Removing the opportunity
for errors is so important. We waste a lot of time in the correction of
Soldiers, and on investigating issues that lead to errors, and yet we do not change the process to eliminate the possibility of
errors.”

Though Six Sigma is a serious program with devotees who are just
as serious, the Boston native maintains a healthy sense of humor

Towne learned of Six Sigma from Donald Copley at the Soldier
Support Institute at Fort Jackson in South Carolina.

“He would actively engage his staff on projects that were set up
to reduce inefficiencies in processes or to avoid costs, Towne said. “The Army
has a budget, so cutting cost is the eventual outcome, but in fact the cost
avoidance is the immediate result in some of these processes.”

Battalion Operations Sgt. Maj. Andrew Privitera
appreciates the professional development the 20-year Soldier took on.

“Towne and I have known each other since 2005, when he came to
Iowa to conduct training with the unit I was assigned to at the time,” said
Privitera. “Now, for the first time in our careers, we have an opportunity to
work together and improve training, operations, and communications systems that
impact recruiting operations throughout the battalion.”

To achieve Six Sigma certification, Towne submitted a project
and received classroom instruction that paralleled the project once he was
accepted.

“The course is four months long, but you work in a classroom one
week a month,” he said. “The rest of the time you are working within your job
capacity and also working on your project.”

Towne said Six Sigma is a valuable tool for leaders in USAREC
because it enables them to fix processes that can lead to errors by Soldiers.

“In USAREC specifically, we have made it so easy for our Soldiers
to make errors. We look at minimizing these errors, thinking it is the fix when
in fact it isn’t. We should take away the opportunity for our Soldiers to make
these errors,” he said. “I would tell
leaders to be open-minded and embrace any change that might come from an
analytical review of a process.”

Leaders who are interested in completing Six Sigma training can
look to the Business and Transformation area for resources, accessible through
AKO.

Privitera says Towne’s common sense approach to identifying
problem statements and remaining objective and open-minded made him a good fit
for Six Sigma training.

“Towne and I plan to work together on many Lean Six Sigma
projects while assigned to the battalion,” Privitera added. “The projects will
focus on streamlining operations and communication systems; and be prioritized
by the needs of the battalion and command guidance from the battalion
commander. Towne will likely take the lead on many projects; as he is the
subject-matter-expert in many of the areas we will focus on. In fact, we are
already working on two projects right now -- focusing on improving the
efficiency of our Future Soldier management program, and our enlistment
processing procedures.”